Islamic parties take Egyptian parliament

The fundamentalist Islamic political party the Muslim Brotherhood won 47 percent of the seats in the new Egyptian parliament.

An alliance of ultraconservative Islamist parties, the Salafi Al-Nour, also won 25 percent of the vote in the first parliamentary elections since former President Hosni Mubarak was deposed nearly a year ago.

The leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, Mohammed Badia, said last week that his party would respect the peace agreement with Israel, “but that all international agreements that Egypt has signed will be re-examined.”

The Salafi Al-Nour wants to impose strict Islamic law in Egypt. — jta